TOW TRUCK USED TO STEAL BANK ATM; CASH MISSING

Police are looking for two men who stole an ATM in Clairemont Mesa early Wednesday and then dumped the machine, minus its cash, at Tecolote Golf Course.

Officers who responded to Chase Bank on Balboa Avenue near Genesee Avenue about 3:30 a.m. found that the ATM had been ripped off its foundation.

Surveillance video showed that the thieves used a flatbed tow truck to remove the machine, then loaded it onto the truck and drove away, San Diego police Lt. Andra Brown said.

The men wore dark clothing and had their faces covered with masks or bandannas.

The ATM and truck were located about two hours later in a remote parking lot of the golf course on Snead Avenue. The ATM had been pried open and the cash was removed, Brown said.

The box containing deposits was intact, so the thieves did not get customers’ personal information, Brown said.

The truck had been stolen in El Cajon, police said.

Debbi Baker • U-T

Bomb squad called to lot near airport; it’s closed 90 minutes

San Diego

A busy airport parking lot was cordoned off for 90 minutes Wednesday while a bomb squad examined a van and found a .22-caliber ammunition clip, officials said.

An attendant at San Park parking lot at Pacific Highway and Sassafras Street, at the east end of the Lindbergh Field runway, called police about 12:35 p.m. to report that a man had driven into the lot, put an object inside a van, then drove away

The attendant thought the item was a bag of trash, so he used a pair of tongs to pull it out of the van. He discovered it was a heavy, metal object and called police, San Diego Fire-Rescue Department spokesman Maurice Luque said.

Bomb squad experts found that the object was a loaded .22-caliber magazine for a semi-automatic pistol that posed no danger. The lot reopened about 2 p.m.

Pauline Repard • U-T

Police break up drinking party attended by dozens of teens

San Diego

Police detained several teenagers who had gathered Tuesday night at a vacant house in Bay Park for a party that had been announced on social media.

Officers went to the home on Chicago Street near Gesner Street about 10:30 p.m. after someone reported a large group of young people drinking and playing loud music, San Diego police Lt. David Rohowits said.

About 50 people who appeared to have been drinking were questioned and given Breathalyzer tests.

About 30 of them who were under age 18 were held until their parents could pick them up. Some 20 to 25 others, ages 18 to 21, were questioned and released, Rohowits said.

A large quantity of alcohol was found inside the house, police said.

Most of the attendees said they did not know that no one lived at the house. The “for sale” sign had been removed.

Detectives are investigating to determine who planned the event and who provided the alcohol.

Debbi Baker • U-T

Opening day at Del Mar races causes usual jammed traffic

San Diego

Traffic was backed up for miles Wednesday afternoon on Interstate 5 around Del Mar as thousands of people made their way to the opening day of the Del Mar races.

The California Highway Patrol issued a traffic advisory around noon for both directions of the highway. Southbound lanes were backed up to Carlsbad, while northbound commuters were hitting the brakes at state Route 56.

Adding to the congestion, the north I-5 Del Mar Heights Road on-ramp was closed after a three-vehicle crash just before 1 p.m. Another three-vehicle crash occurred around 12:20 p.m. on the north Via de la Valle off-ramp.